HEALTH CARE – CHILD OBESITY

As a parent, I think one of the most alarming things happening around the world is child obesity. Moreover, I will come straight to the point.

– Childhood Obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the last 30 years.
– More than 3.5 Million children in the age – group of 5 to 17 have type 2 diabetes
– About 13.5 million children have impaired glucose tolerance, which is a precursor to diabetes
– Around 24 million children have high blood pressure
– More than 33 million children have fatty liver

All this is the aftermath of Obesity.

As parents, as much as we want our children to be happy and healthy, equally true is the fact that in today’s time and age of junk food, the perils of child obesity are looming large on an entire generation.

I thus spoke to Dr. Sivanandan, from Aster Clinics and Hospitals to understand the issue better and be able to address it in the nick of time. As Dr. Sivanandan puts it, obesity can be simply measured by calculating the Body Mass Index (BMI) of an individual. However, what is more complex is the plethora of diseases that Child Obesity can eventually lead to. Diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, joint problems, and even bone deformities are just some of the diseases that can affect our children. Moreover, this is just the tip of the iceberg, warns Dr. Sivanandan. Watch the video to know what he has to say.

The only way to address this issue is awareness amongst parents. Awareness to bring about lifestyle modifications and change the eating habits of our children so that they lead a healthy and disease-free future. This can be achieved only if we change our lifestyle and lead by example. As I always say, we are what we eat. So it is we, the parents who first need to give up on junk food and a sedentary lifestyle because our children will follow our example and not our advice. Do share your thoughts with me…